Searching for Bobby Fischer (1993)
“She decided not to take the offered pawn, to leave the tension on the board. She liked it like that. She liked the power of the pieces, exerted along files and diagonals. In the middle of the game, when pieces were everywhere, the forces crisscrossing the board thrilled her. She brought out her king’s knight, […]
Duck Soup (1933)
Do I really want to admit this in public? Perhaps I should give the matter more thought, or find a way to hedge my bets. Why not play it safe? After all, there’s no telling who’s reading this column. I could destroy what little credibility I have left. I don’t actually have to come right […]
Impromptu (1991)
Seldom Scene January 1995 Genre: Drama, Biography Director: James Lapine Actors: Judy Davis, Hugh Grant, Emma Thompson, Bernadette Peters, Mandy Patinkin Country: UK, France First-time director James Lapine’s Impromptu (1989) is Masterpiece Theatre with an extra dollop of gusto. Focusing on George Sand, the French novelist who was described as “everything a 19th Century lady […]
Monsieur Verdoux (1947)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pgVF1aRTCs Go ahead, call me Mr. Scrooge. I deserve it. Of all the Charlie Chaplin films I could have picked to look at this month (from a great recent selection at the Riondel Market), I chose Monsieur Verdoux. Monsieur Verdoux?!? Isn’t that the one based on an idea by Orson Welles? The infamous 1947 “Comedy […]
The Nasty Girl (1990)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8pAy5Yak3U A saviour’s a nuisance to live with at home —Joan Baez, “Winds of the Old Days” The truth is out there….but what is it worth? What exactly would you be willing to sacrifice for it? Your career? Your family? Your friends? Your life? Some who live here in the Kootenays have already made such […]
Say Anything (1989)
Cameron Crowe’s Say Anything (1989) might be rated as unfit for parental viewing. After all, parents are probably paranoid enough as it is. They don’t need to watch movies about one of their most secret fears coming true. It’s the nightmare that begins with the question: “My daughter is dating HIM…!?!” and ends with a […]
Raise the Red Lantern (1991)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Yo8bvg0MAg “…And the 1992 Academy Award for Best Architecture in a Leading Role goes to….the extraordinary classical Chinese Estate featured in Raise the Red Lantern!! Accepting the award on behalf of the house are the director and the cinematographer of Raise the Red Lantern, Zhang Yimou and Zhao Fei…. ” Although stranger things have probably […]
Notorious (1946)
Devlin (Gary Grant): Don’t you need a coat? Alicia (Ingrid Bergman): You’ll do. “I don’t get all this talk about chicken.” –screenwriter Ben Hecht to director Alfred Hitchcock Two things make it difficult for me to write a review of Notorious (1946), my favourite Hitchcock film of them all. The first is that Alfred Hitchcock […]
Sorcerer (1977)
This month’s review is a guilty pleasure. Like a large chocolate fudge sundae. But more violent. If you considered movies such as Alien, The Terminator, and Predator to be mere juvenile mayhem, stop reading this review now. If you considered them juvenile mayhem, and still had a good time, stay with me. When William Friedkin’s […]
Benny & Joon (1993)
I wanted to write this review of Jeremiah Chechik’s Benny & Joon even before I saw the film. I’d heard from someone that actor Johnny Depp had modelled his character on Buster Keaton. That’s the highest recommendation I know. The Silent Era of films in America produced three great comic actors: Charlie Chaplin, Harold Lloyd, […]